


rest

by vaahtokarkki



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-22
Updated: 2017-06-22
Packaged: 2018-11-17 11:35:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,110
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11274600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vaahtokarkki/pseuds/vaahtokarkki
Summary: Wataru looks for a peaceful place to sleep and finds a certain coffin.





	rest

**Author's Note:**

> hello yes I'm back at it with the watareis look I DO have other ideas too but these two are my favourites
> 
> this is super cheesy and fluffy but I guess that's what I love writing the most

Wataru is tired.

It doesn’t catch up with him often, he doesn’t let it catch up with him, but he’s been jumping around for two weeks straight without a break, and it’s finally time to admit that he too has his limits and what he needs is a rest away from people.

The problem is, where at school he could safely take a nap. The persona he keeps up greatly relies on everyone thinking of him as invincible, almost inhuman, and thus it would be unacceptable for any other student to see him sleeping.

Normally, his own club room would be the best option, but today, Hokuto and Tomoya are practising for their upcoming play, so the room is occupied. The roof is a hit-or-miss, as anyone else could want to take a nap or contemplate on life. The infirmary has comfortable beds but it also runs a high risk of someone else being there.

No, Wataru needs a place with minimal chance of interruption. He strides down the hallways, but can’t come up with anything – until he stops and realises his feet have taken him to the door of the light music club.

Rei keeps a coffin inside, does he not? Wataru knows he sleeps there himself, sometimes.

Wataru presses an ear against the door. If someone’s there, he’ll hear – there’s a particularly loud second-year in the club, and the first-year twins are quite cheerful, as well…

Wataru doesn’t hear a single sound from inside the room, so he carefully opens the door. The only person who might be inside is Rei, and if he is, Wataru can just make a hasty retreat after coming up with an excuse for why he came here in the first place. It’s likely Rei will see through him, but it’s also likely he won’t press the issue any further.

Wataru peeks inside the room. He’s usually not timid, but right now he’s not in the mood to make a scene. The curtains are open, and so is the coffin, which lies at the other side of the room. That _would_ imply Rei’s not inside. Wataru closes the door and makes his way through the room with silent footsteps, just in case he’s wrong and Rei _is_ here. If he’s asleep, it’ll be easier to slip away if Wataru doesn’t wake him up. Rei has always been one of the few who Wataru lets see through himself, and him seeing Wataru like this wouldn’t be as much of a bother as someone else, but Wataru would still prefer not having to worry a dear friend.

Wataru stops right in front of the coffin, casting his eyes down.

It’s empty.

Wataru lets out the smallest sigh of relief. He’s not in the mood to make explanations, even to Rei. He hesitates, placing his hand on the edge of the coffin. It _is_ Rei’s property, even though Wataru knows he wouldn’t mind lending it to a friend.

The interior of the coffin is red and plush and looks soft and inviting, and Wataru’s whole body aches with exhaustion, so finally he takes off his shoes and carefully climbs inside it. He doesn’t intend to sleep long, so using it for a short time without permission should be fine, right…?

It’s a strange feeling to lie inside a coffin, but just as it looked, the inside is soft, and Wataru’s eyes flutter close with a sigh.

 

As soon as Rei enters the light music club room, he knows he’s not alone. He can sense someone else’s presence, although it’s kind of faint. But there’s no one in sight, and Rei can’t hear anything, either.

Rei slowly walks through the room, sharp eyes searching for the intruder. He came here to sleep, but the situation has taken his interest – someone else is definitely in the room, but where?

He stops walking as he nears his coffin. Now he can finally hear something, and it almost sounds like someone breathing slowly. Did someone…?

Rei takes the final steps and peeks inside the coffin.

Well. It’s _definitely_ not who he expected.

Rei tilts his head and stares at Wataru for a while. Fast asleep, he looks like a completely different person. His face is calm and relaxed, and his hair frames it in a beautiful way. He looks younger, Rei thinks – for once, like his age. Wataru doesn’t speak of it and Rei doesn’t ask, but he carries a heavy weight on his shoulders, and always puts on masks to hide it.

Rei leans against the edge of the coffin and takes some of Wataru’s hair between his fingers. As expected, it’s soft – Wataru must use a fortune on hair products.

Rei twirls the strand of hair between his fingers and thinks real hard about it. He came here to catch some sleep, but now his coffin is occupied. Wataru looks far too peaceful like this and Rei really doesn’t want to disturb his sleep. He could try to find another place to take a nap, but can’t come up with anything. Unlike Ritsu, he finds himself unable to fall asleep just anywhere, and in the case he does, he wakes up with terrible aches in his bones.

All this, and he’s _really_ getting sleepier again, with the sun so high, so Rei goes to close the curtains and then makes his way back to where Wataru still sleeps.

He’s never fit two people in the coffin before, but he sizes it up now and decides it should be just wide enough.

Perhaps it would be more appropriate to wake Wataru up instead of climbing in to sleep next to him, but really, it’s Wataru’s own fault for coming here to sleep in the first place, so Rei takes off his shoes and slowly climbs in, careful to not stir Wataru’s slumber.

It’s not the easiest job, but by settling sideways, Rei manages to fit himself next to Wataru so that only half of his body is draped over the other boy. He makes sure that Wataru is still asleep and then relaxes. He carefully puts one arm over Wataru’s chest and rests his head against his shoulder, closing his eyes.

The warmth of Wataru’s body lulls Rei to fall asleep faster than he’s ever fallen asleep before.

 

The first thing Wataru notices upon waking up is a strange weight over half of his body. He reaches out to something on his chest, and startles fully awake when his fingers find someone else’s hand.

Eyes now wide open, Wataru turns his head slightly to find messy black hair.

Ah.

He remembers he went searching for a place to rest, and that what he found was Rei’s coffin. It wouldn’t take a genius to deduce that the person snuggling comfortably against him is Rei, then. The room is slightly darker than before, but the sun must be strong against the curtains, because it’s still in no way difficult to see.

Wataru shifts his whole body to take a better look at Rei. It’s not the first time he’s seen Rei asleep, but the sight is always a beautiful one. Rei never misses a chance to mention how old he feels, and when Wataru looks at him like this, it’s like ten years worth of worries have washed away from his face.

Wataru lets go of the hand he was still holding, and swipes away some of the hair covering Rei’s face. Rei stirs, but doesn’t wake up, and instead moves closer, burying his face deeper in the crook of Wataru’s neck. It’s difficult to watch him from this angle, so Wataru settles for sliding his fingers down Rei’s cheek and then bringing them to the back of his neck, where he runs them through his silken black hair.

They’ve never allowed themselves to be physically this close to each other, and Wataru knows every reason why, but right now, this closeness feels so natural that all objections wash away from his mind.

They never took those those last crucial steps that would turn their friendship into a relationship, and now that Rei is literally in his arms, Wataru has to ask himself it it was truly the right choice. After they as the five oddballs broke down, Wataru thought this was the only way it could go, that it would be a bit too painful when he even joined the unit that brought them down in the first place.

But now, well, Wataru finds himself lost in some old daydreams, ones that went exactly like this, with him and Rei wrapped around each other in silence.

Wataru’s so lost in his thoughts that he doesn’t notice Rei’s arms tightening around him, but startles when Rei moves his head and starts coughing.

”Good morning”, Rei wheezes. ”How do you live with all this hair?”

Rei’s head is raised enough for Wataru to see the light blue strands stuck in his mouth, and Wataru helps him out by removing them.

”By not eating them, of course”, Wataru replies, pulling his hand away. ”How long have I slept?”

”Mm, class should be going on right now”, Rei mutters, nuzzling his face back against Wataru’s neck.

”Oh, well!” Wataru sighs. ”The teacher probably has an easier time without me causing a ruckus. Kanata might feel lonely, though, if he went to class.”

”You’re being honest today”, Rei notes. ”Though I suppose you must be truly tired if you came here to sleep.”

”Apologies for taking your coffin without asking, I planned to be gone before you came back”, Wataru confesses.

”Oh? I don’t mind, really.”

If Wataru is being more honest than usual, then what’s Rei doing? Wataru knows he can get like this when sleepy, but it’s never been a problem because words like that were never whispered against his neck. Wataru shifts, suddenly more aware of how tightly their bodies are pressed against each other.

”Hmm? Your pulse is getting faster.”

It’s absolutely no surprise Rei would notice, with his mouth pressed against the spot where Wataru’s blood flows the strongest.

”Well, that’s _your_ fault”, Wataru sighs dramatically.

”Oh? You always did a great job at pretending you’re not into me”, Rei lifts his head, his eyes glinting.

”I _am_ an actor”, Wataru reminds him.

”Do you still feel like acting?” Rei’s face is suddenly serious and his voice low and quiet, and Wataru swallows, knowing they’re lingering dangerously close to all those unspoken things they both bottled up so long ago.

”About what?” he throws back, but he’s still tired and they’re still too close to each other, so his words don’t really have an edge anymore.

”About us”, Rei sighs, and Wataru takes his time to answer because this is the last point where he could back away and pretend he never fell in love with Rei Sakuma, but it’s been so tiring to keep this act up on top of every other act he does, and nothing has ever felt as right as Rei’s arms around him, so he decides to just tell him the truth.

”No”, he simply says, and Rei exhales deeply, settling back against Wataru, who wraps an arm around Rei in return.

The tension dissipates, and the room goes so quiet that Wataru can feel Rei’s heartbeat against his chest, echoing his own.

”Rei…?” Wataru begins, but Rei stops him by pressing a short kiss against his neck.

”Mm… first, we sleep a little longer, and then figure out what follows”, Rei’s voice is quiet and distant, he’s close to falling back asleep, but Wataru finds himself wide awake with no hope of drifting off again. The skin of his neck tingles at where Rei’s lips touched, and it’s as if that one kiss has energised him completely, making him want to jump up and draw Rei out of the coffin and into a dance.

But he doesn’t, because now that they’ve finally arrived at this point, they have all the time in the world ahead of them, and Wataru has waited so long for this moment that he doesn’t mind waiting a little bit more to tell Rei exactly how much he’s wanted to hold him like this.

Wataru shifts his head to place a kiss on top of Rei’s forehead, earning a contented sigh against his neck.

Yes, he hums, closing his eyes and inhaling the scent of Rei’s hair, maybe it took them forever to get here with both being too stubborn to admit anything until they were tired enough… but now that they _are_ here, Wataru knows there’s no other way it could have turned out.

And that’s enough for now.

**Author's Note:**

> me @ me: you don't have to write how wataru normally is if you just write him in situations where he's not his usual self
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this!! I know I had a lot of fun writing it so. thank you for reading!! <3


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